Vitamin D Receptor Gene Polymorphisms and the Risk of Colorectal Cancer in a Chinese Population

Objective The purpose was to investigate single nucleotide polymorphism of the vitamin D recepter gene and its possible relationship with colorectal cancer (CRC) in a Chinese population. Methods The vitamin D receptor (VDR) genotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) using endonuclease BsmI and FokI, and direct sequencing in 400 Chinese people, comprised of 200 CRC patients and 200 controls from the same area in China. Results The distribution of alleles (F/f) and genotypes (FF/Ff/ff) of the FokI had no significant difference between CRC patients and normal controls (P > 0.05), while that of the B allele and the BB genotype of the BsmI in CRC patients was significantly lower compared with the control group (0.1625 versus 0.740, P < 0.05, OR = 0.068, 95% CI: 0.048-0.096 and 0.060 versus 0.590, P < 0.05, OR = 0.015, 95% CI: 0.007-0.032). Conclusion The BB genotype of the VDR BsmI variant was significantly associated with a decreased risk of CRC in a Chinese population, while the VDR FokI polymorphism was not significantly associated with it.